Safety mechanism for centrifugal machines



May 22, 1934. c. F. MEYER 1,959,732

SAFETY MECHANISM FOR CENTRIFUGAL MACHINES Filed Aug. 19, 1930,l 3Sheets-Sheet l IN V EN TOR:

A TTORN E YS.

May 22, 1934. c, F. MEYER SAFETY MECHANISM FOR CENTRIFUGAL MACHINESFiled Aug. 19, 195o .lZ-"I E. c5

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Patented May 22, 1934 ITE STWES PATENT OFFICE SAFETY MECHANISM FRCENTRIFUGAL MACHENES Application August 19, 1930, Serial No. 476,360

20 Claims.

This invention relates to safety devices for machines such ascentrifugal extractors having a protective guard or cover, and moreparticularly to safety control and locking means for such a guard themain objects being to provide novel and simple means preventing theopening of the guard while the parts being protected thereby are inoperation, and maintaining such operative parts disconnected from thedriving means while the guard is unlocked.

The invention comprises the novel elements, features of construction andarrangement of parts in cooperative relationship as herein fullydisclosed by the following detailed description and accompanyingdrawings of one embodiment thereof, reference to which will make theabove as well as other objects and attendant advantages more readilyapparent.

Referring to the drawings:-

Fig. l is an elevational View of a known centrifugal extractor having myinvention applied thereto, the casing as well as other parts beingbroken away and in section.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary View similar to Fig. 1 but showing certain partsin another position.

Fig. 3 is an elevational view of the upper rear end of the machine, asseen by looking in the direction of the arrow A in Fig. 2.

Figs. 4, 5 and 6 are similar fragmentary detail views of the cover hingeand associated parts in various positions; Fig. 4 being takensubstantially on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 'l is a fragmentary sectional view taken substantially on the line7-7 of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary central sectional view through the centrifugalclutch device forming part of my invention.

Fig. 9 is a partial bottom plan view of the clutch device shown in Fig.7, certain parts being broken away and others omitted to more clearlyshow the details of construction.

Fig. 10 is a fragmentary detail View of certain parts of the clutchdevice shown in Fig. 8, as seen by looking in the direction of arrowslll- 10.

For illustrative purposes, my invention is shown applied to a knowncentrifugal hydro-extractor of the portable type usable primarily indye-houses, laundries or homes, for the purpose of extracting water oraqueous solutions from clothing and textile materials during dyeing orlaundering. Such amachine is ordinarily provided with a guard or coverwhich is closed during operation to prevent contact with the rotatingcontainer or other moving parts, as well as to prevent material fromaccidentally flying out of its container during gyration.

Automatic mechanism is commonly provided in connection with suchamachine which prevents the guard from being opened during operation off the machine and also to prevent the machine or its container frombeing operated while the guard is open or unlocked; and my invention ismainly directed to improved and novel mechanism for accomplishing this,which is simple in construction and more particularly adapted tocentrifugal machines of. the character mentioned.

To facilitate the understanding of my invention only suchknown parts ofthe extractor directly connected and. cooperating with the same havebeen indicated in the drawings..

As shown, the extractor comprises essentially a gyrating unitconsisting. of a. basketv or container 1 2- and a motor 13 for drivingthe. same; the unit being mounted for free movement on suspension rods14 suitably connected with the unit and rigid frame members or posts1-5.. The mechanism is enclosed in a casing 16 and the entire structuremounted on wheels 17.

The container 12 and casing l-areopen at their top to permit of readyaccess to the container, and a protective cover or guard 13 is providedfor the purpose mentioned.

In accordance with my invention I provideA a separate shaft 19 on whichthe container 12 is rockably or otherwise securedl inknown manner,whichl shaft rotates in a bearing 20 forming part of a housing, in thelower end of which the motor 13 is mounted and to whichthe suspensionrods 14 are loosely connected. The container shaft 19 is in axialalignment with the motor shaft 13a (see Fig. 8) and connected or disconnected with the latter by a centrifugal clutch device generallyindicated by the numeral 21.

Thisdevice comprises a housing or shell 22-iixedly keyedk to thecontainer shaft as shown, and a circular mounting member 24 similarlykeyed to the motor shaft 13a. A circular disk 25 is secured to themember 24 by screw bolts 26 on which arcuate shaped fly-weightsorarms-27. are freely pivoted. The outer surfaces of the arms are coveredwithleather, asbestos or other friction material 28 adapted to engagethe inner surface of the housing 22 when the arms 27v are thrownoutwardly by the centrifugal force developed by the rotatingl motorshaft, to lock the motor shaft 13a and container shaft 19 together forunited rotation.

A collar 29 provided with. cam notches. 31.. is turnably mounted on thehub of bearing mem- Vso casing,

-swung into open position ber 24 and connected with the outer free endsof the arms 27 by links 32. Springs 33, one of which is shown in Fig. 9,are connected respectively to the notched collar 29 and arms 27 tonormally draw the arms inwardly and out of engagement with the shell 22.

A second collar 34 having cam projections 35 similar in configuration tothe notches 31 of collar 29 and adapted to move into and out ofengagement with the same, is: slidably fixed to the motor shaft 13a by akey 30. A grooved ring 36, forming part of a ball bearing, is rigidlysecured to the collar 34, while the second similar ring 37 of the ballbearing is seated in the collar 38 provided at its outside with opposedstuds 39 in engagement with the slotted outer ends of a bifurcated lever41, pivoted on a pin 43 carried by a bearing 44, fixed on the motorhousing.

The lever 41 is connected by a cable 45, which extends over a pulley 46,to a pivotally mounted gear segment 47 in mesh with a rack member 48pinned to a slide rod 49, normally forced toy its lower position (shownin Fig. 2) by a spring 5l 'mounted thereon between a collar 52 and a rodvbearing member 53.

The cover or guard 18 is secured to the casing 16 by a link member 54whose ends are pivotally connected respectively to the guard and asshown, so as to permit the guard to be limitedly shifted horizontallywhile closed, and

as indicated by the dotand-dash lines in Fig. 2. A projection on link 54serves as a stop for the guard when in raised or open position. Thelower end of link 54 has a flat portion 54a that acts as a stop againstcasing 16. o

A slide plate 56 is movably mounted in a guide slot 57 of a bearingmember 58 (see Fig. '7) and connected for movement with the link 54 byprojections 58a integral with the plate, which latter extend intogrooves 59 in the link. An aperture 61 is provided in the plate 56 forthe purpose of permitting the upper reduced end 49a of the rod 49 topass therethrough when the guard 18 is in properly closed position, asclearly shown in Fig. 1. In this position a latch member 62 on the-guard engages with the downwardly turned edge of a flange 16a formingthe opening in casing 16, and prevents the guard from being raised orswung open.

It will be noted that in order to open the guard it is necessary to rstwithdraw the rod end 49a 'from the aperture 61, then shift the guardrearwardly until the latch member 62 disengages the flange 16a, afterwhich it can bie swung open. To

assure that such rearward shifting of the guard reaches its maximumextent before it is lifted,

segmental lugs 63 are formed on the guard at each side of the link 54that engage under projections 64 on casing 16 until the proper openingposition of the guard has been reached. This is clearly illustrated inFigs. 4, 5 and 6.

Operation y f In Fig. 1, the guard 18 is shown locked in closedposition, that is, the latch member 62 engages the edge of flange 16athereby preventing raising of the guard, while rod end 49a extendsthrough aperture 61 in slide plate 56 and prevents the guard from beingshifted rearwardly.

If the motor 13 is running when the guard is thus locked, the parts ofthe centrifugal clutch device 21 will assume the active positionillustrated in Figs.,8 and 9 and lock motor shaft 13a andcontainer shaft19 together for united rotation. The container l2 will consequently berevolved.

The clutch device functions as soon as the flyweights or arms 27 arepermitted to fly outwardly and into locking engagement with the shell 22by the centrifugal action developed by the rotating motor shaft 13a.During suoli action collar 29 is partly rotated due to its linkedconnection with the arms, and its notches 31 coact with the camprojections 35 on collar 34 to shift the latter axially and downwardly,thereby shifting Iccilar 38 and moving the rod 49 upwardly through thelever 41 and cable 45, against the action of spring 51.

From this it will be apparent that when the guard 18 is in the positionshown in Fig. l, so that the aperture 61 in plate 56 registers with therod end 49a, the centrifugal clutch device 21 will function to connectthe rotating motor shaft 13a with the container shaft 19 andsimultaneously shift the rod end 49a into the aperture 6l to lock theguard in closed position.

Unless the guard is properly closed, that is, unless the plate 56 is insuch position that its aperture 6l registers with the rod end 49a, thelatter cannot be raised to lock the guard, and consequently the camparts of collars 38 and 29 will remain in engagement, thereby preventingthe turning of the collar. 29 so that the arms 37 are prevented fromflying outwardly to lock the shell 22.

In other words, when the guard 18 has been properly closed and the motor13 is rimning the clutch device 21 will act to simultaneously connectthe motor shaft 13a with the container shaft 19 and lock the guard, andunless the guard is properly closed it will not be locked and the shaft19 will remain disconnected from the motor shaft.

Of course, the safety device shown and de-- scribed can be changed andmodified in various ways without departing from the invention hereindisclosed and hereinafter claimed.

I claim:-

l. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a casing, a containertherein, said container having an opening affording access thereto, aguard for the container, said guard being shiftable in one directionrelative to said opening for releasing the same and in another directionfor full opening thereof, a container shaft, a drive shaft, acentrifugally operated device for connecting and disconnecting saidshafts, and locking mechanism for the guard operatively connected withsaid device.

2. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container, a containershaft, a drive shaft, a centrifugally operated device for connecting anddisconnecting said shafts, and a shif'table guard for said containeradapted to control said device by its shifting action in one plane ofmovement, said guard including means for swinging movement in anotherplane, to expose said container.

3. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container; a guard forthe container; a container shaft; a drive shaft; a centrifugallyoperated device for connecting and disconnecting said shafts comprisinga fiy-weight and cam member operated thereby; and a locking member` forthe guard operated by said cam member.

4. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container; a guard forthe container; a container shaft; a drive shaft; a centrifugallyoperated device for connecting and disconnecting said shafts comprisinga fly-'Weight and a movable cam member connected therewith; and meansactuated by said guard for controlling the movement of said cam member.

5; In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container, a guard forthe container, a container shaft, a drive shaft, an apertured memberconnected with said guard, a lock member adapted for cooperation withsaid apertured member, a centrifugally operated device for connectingand disconnecting said shafts, and means connecting said device and lockmember.

6. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container, a limitedlyshiftable guard for the container, a container shaft, a drive shaft, anapertured plate connected with said guard, a lock rod adapted forcooperation with said apertured member, a centrifugally operated devicefor connecting and disconnecting said shafts, and means connecting saiddevice and lock rod.

7. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container provided withan opening for affording access to the interior thereof; a cover forclosing said opening; means for mounting said cover for shiftingmovement in the plane of said opening and for swinging movement towardand away from said opening; a container shaft; a drive shaft; a clutchfor connecting and disconnecting said shafts, said clutch including amovable member; and locking means for said cover operable by movement ofsaid member to lock or unlock said cover.

8. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container provided withan opening for affording access to the interior thereof; a hinged coverfor closing said opening, said cover being mounted on said container soas to enable a sliding movement relative to said opening preliminary toswinging on its hinge for exposing said opening; a container shaft; adrive shaft; a clutch of the centrifugal type for connecting anddisconnecting said shafts, and locking means engageable with said cover,said clutch includmg a centrifugally operated member for actuating saidlocking means.

9. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a-rotary containerprovided with an opening affording access thereto, a cover shiftable inone direction relatively to said opening for releasing the same and inanother direction for full opening thereof, a shaft for operating saidcontainer; and locking means for said cover operable by said shaft forcontrolling the shifting of said cover.

10. In combination with a casing having an opening, a container mountedin said casing, a shaft for operating said casing, and a cover forclosing said container; means for mounting said cover on said casing forshifting movement substantially in the plane of the top thereof torelease the same and in another direction to open or close said opening;and locking means operable by said shaft for holding said cover againstsaid shifting movement.

11. In a centrifugal machine comprising a casing, and a container drivemechanism mounted therein; a lockable cover mounted on said casing so asto enable a preliminary releasing movement and subsequent openingmovement thereof, a cover engaging device movable on said casing toprevent or permit such releasing movement, and means for automaticallyoperating said device by said drive mechanism.

12t In a centrifugal machine comprising a casing and a container drivemechanism mounted therein, a lockable cover mounted on said casing' soas to be 'shift'able in a prelirninary releasing movement thereof and soas to be pivotable in a subsequent opening movement thereof, a coverlocking device movable on said casing to prevent or permit suchpreliminary shifting or releasing movement of said cover, and means forautomatically operating said locking device by said drive mechanism.

'13. In a centrifugal machine the combination of a container, a casingenclosing said container and having an opening to afford access thereto,a cover for' said opening, means for mounting said cover for shiftingmovement in the plane of said opening' and for swinging movement towardor away from said plane to open or close said casing, a rotatable shaftfor operating said container, and means associated with said shaft andsaid cover for automatically locking said cover against said shiftingmovement thereof when the rate of rotation of said shaft reaches apredetermined rate.

14. In a centrifugal machine including a easing and a container drivemechanism mounted therein, a cover mounted on said casing so as toenable a preliminary releasing movement laterally and a subsequentswinging opening movement, a locking device on said casing to controlsaid releasing movement, and means for operating said device from saiddrive mechanism.

15. In a centrifugal machine including a casing and a container drivemechanism mounted therein, a cover mounted on said casing so as topermit a preliminary releasing movement in one direction and asubsequent opening movement in another direction, a locking device onsaid casing to control said releasing movement, means for operating saiddevice from said drive mechanism, and guiding means on said cover toeffect cooperation of the cover with said locking device.

16. In a centrifugal machine, the combination of a container, a guardfor said container, a container shaft, a drive shaft, a clutch forconnectmg and disconnecting said shafts, said clutch including a housingmemberI fixed to one of said shafts, a complementary member fixed to theother shaft, a centrifugal device connected to one of said members andarranged to engage the other member, a collar freely mounted on saidother member and operatively connected to said device, a second collarslidably mounted on said other` shaft, said collars includingcooperative engageable portions, and means controlled by said guard foroperating said clutch.

17. In a centrifugal machine, the combination of a container, a guardfor said container, a container shaft, a drive shaft, a clutch forconnecting and disconnecting said shafts, said clutch including ahousing member fixed to one of said shafts, a complementary member fixedto the other shaft, a centrifugal device connected to one of saidmembers and arranged to engage the other member, a collar freely mounted0n said other member and operatively connected to said device, a secondcollar slidably mounted on said other shaft, said collars includingcooperative engageable portions, and means controlled by said guard foroperating said clutch, said clutch operating means including anapertured plate associated with said guard, a lock rod arranged forcogil lio

its

'tainer shaft, a d ive shaft, a clutch for connecting and disconnectingsaid shafts, said clutch including a housing xedto said container shaft,a member complementary to said housing fixed to said drive shaft, aplurality or" centrifugal arms pivotally connected to said mem er andarranged to engage said housing, a collar freely mounted on said memberand operatively connected to said arms, a second collar slidably mountedon said drive shaft, said collars including cooperative cam portions,and means controlled by said guard for operating said clutch.

19. In a centrifugal machine, the combination of a container, a guardfor said container, a container shaft, a drive shait, a clutch forcomico"- ing and disconnecting said shafts, said clutch including ahousing fixed to said container sli a complementary member fixed tc saiddrive shaft, a plurality of centrifugal arms pivotally connected to saidmember and arranged to engage said housing, a cellar vfreely mounted onsaid member and operatively connected to said arms, a second collarslidaoly mounted on drive shaft, said collars including cooperative camportions, and means controlled by guard for operating said clutch, saidclutch operating means including an apertured plate associated with saidguard,

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a lock rod for cooperation with said apertured plate, and meansoperatively connecting said lock and said second collar.

20. A safety device for centrifugal machines including, in combination,a casing, a container therein, a guard on said casing for saidcontainer, a container shaft, a drive shaft, a centrifugal clutch forconnecting and disconnecting said shafts, said clutch including ahousing xed to one of said shafts, a complementary member xed to theother shaft, a plurality of centrifugal members pivctally connected tosaid complementary member and arranged to engage said housing, a colla-rcooperative With said complementary member and operatively connected tosaid centrifugal members, a second collar slidably mounted on said driveshaft, said collars including cooperative engageable portions, meanscontrolled said guard for operating said clutch, said clutch operatingmeans including a locking plate sl ;ly associated with said guard, alock rod arranged for registry with said locking plate, meansoperatively connecting said lock and said second collar, and guidingmeans to insure registration o said lock rod and plate.

CHRISTIAN F. MEYER.

